killiguy Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Ive ben plagued for a long time,just in certain tanks with cyanobacteria,that rapidly growing slime"algae". I have used doxycycline to kill it off in small tanks but I now notice it in a newly set up 250Ltank with breeder black calvus and rainbows in.Is there a biological way of getting rid of it?does anything eat it?I hate using antibiotics which of course trash the filter and all the good bugs in the tank,I certainly dont want to treat the calvus tank with it. Any advice????Its really ugly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted November 3, 2009 Share Posted November 3, 2009 I have never come across anything that eats it nor heard of any natural methods other that waiting for what ever conditions the bg is finding to exist to change. I have a system of three tanks all connected - it exists in one but not the other two -go figure. Bg can like tanks with low/zero nitrates. I had a planted tank with zero nitrates so I increased the amount of nitrate in the fertiliser and eradicated the bg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noddy65 Posted November 3, 2009 Share Posted November 3, 2009 I have never come across anything that eats it nor heard of any natural methods other that waiting for what ever conditions the bg is finding to exist to change. I have a system of three tanks all connected - it exists in one but not the other two -go figure. Bg can like tanks with low/zero nitrates. I had a planted tank with zero nitrates so I increased the amount of nitrate in the fertiliser and eradicated the bg. Yep...low nitrates will do it... The other option is to just keep on manually removing it until the tank becomes stable and it will disappear. Siphoning works wonders. I have a vague memory of hearing that dropping bicarb/baking soda (or somehting like that) directly onto it will kill it off. Maybe do a Google search? Some snails will also eat it (Waterhouse Snails maybe?) Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killiguy Posted November 4, 2009 Author Share Posted November 4, 2009 Thanks guys Ive noticed it alot in my Nothobranchius tanks(a Killifish)which are quite brackish and low light,so salt seems to make no difference nor reducing light.It seems to like hard alkaline water,but I dont see it in my very acid (3.5-4.0) wild Betta tanks (but no bacteria seem to live in those tanks!!) III continue to remove it and do lots of water changes,the tank has lots of plants in,but slow growing java fern mainly. I have plant fertilizer would that help them or help plant growth more.Once its established Ive not noticed it going away,it that other peoples experience?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 Thanks guys Ive noticed it alot in my Nothobranchius tanks(a Killifish)which are quite brackish and low light,so salt seems to make no difference nor reducing light.It seems to like hard alkaline water,but I dont see it in my very acid (3.5-4.0) wild Betta tanks (but no bacteria seem to live in those tanks!!) III continue to remove it and do lots of water changes,the tank has lots of plants in,but slow growing java fern mainly. I have plant fertilizer would that help them or help plant growth more.Once its established Ive not noticed it going away,it that other peoples experience?? BG is a bacteria (as you know). Plant fertiliser is for plants not bacteria, so should have no effect on the BG. Increase the nitrate in the fertiliser and you may erradicate the BG. I used to make my own so was a simple matter but if yours is bottle bought, not so easy. I have never seen a snail eat BG but then I have not heard of "waterhouse" snails. New snail or a new name for an old snail? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malrift Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 Flagyll will get rid of it as it is a bacteria anti biotics work well. If I remember I used to use 1 tablet to 40l. If you are freindly with your vet they will sell it to you for this problem you just have to explain it to them. Used this when I had my aquarium maintenance business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gianniz Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 uv? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enigma Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 erythromycin will nail it for sure. it is bit hard to get. Ben sells similar stuff http://www.aquariumproducts.com.au/catalog...php?prodID=4180 I tried mystery snails last time and i was shocked that they sucked them all. however, it is not an option if you have a planted tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malrift Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 Uv doesn't work. erythromyacin is the ingredient in flagyll. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 malrift is correct in saying that uv won't work. Mystery snails consume BG???? If so, provided they are not STARVING and there is sufficient food in the tank (BG?) try them out. You can always pull them out should things go wrong. Just put on three or four as this will test them out and they will be easy to get back out again. Be carefull with antibiotics. Make sure you kill ALL BG when dosing otherwise you will be creating an antibiotic resistant strain of BG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malrift Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 the reason being that BG is not water born(floats in water colum) it is a stationery bacteria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killiguy Posted November 5, 2009 Author Share Posted November 5, 2009 Does Flagyll(its chemical name is Metronidazole) work?It is normally used for anaerobic bacteria and some paracytes, this stuff is definitely an aerobic bug.I have found doxycycline works wonders but kills all the good bugs as well of course and Id rather a less drastic solution hence the thread. Do mystery snails eat it??Id be happy to use them and when do you get "waterhouse snails" and what exactly are they??They arent like those Malasyian burrowing pests?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malrift Posted November 5, 2009 Share Posted November 5, 2009 have used it a number of times and has worked for me. Never tried the mystery snails as the flagyll was suggested by a vet who specialises in aquaculture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killiguy Posted November 5, 2009 Author Share Posted November 5, 2009 Thats very interesting.I wonder if it effects the biological bacteria less as it has a very narrow spectrum???I have some so III try it next time in a small tank.Thanks Malrift Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenzy Posted November 6, 2009 Share Posted November 6, 2009 malrift is correct in saying that uv won't work. Mystery snails consume BG???? If so, provided they are not STARVING and there is sufficient food in the tank (BG?) try them out. You can always pull them out should things go wrong. Just put on three or four as this will test them out and they will be easy to get back out again. Be carefull with antibiotics. Make sure you kill ALL BG when dosing otherwise you will be creating an antibiotic resistant strain of BG. CT. I'm more up on human medicine than fish but wouldn't it also be true that exposing the tank to antibiotics too often would also cause a degree of resisitance to ABs in your fish? I'm sure this wouldn't be desirable either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killiguy Posted November 7, 2009 Author Share Posted November 7, 2009 I have been thinking about that comment and Im not sure that resistance in the BG is such a problem but Im not sure if they have plasmids which can transfer resistance to other bacteria.When I treat the BG I always remove the fish since the filtration is trashed.It is possible that using Doxycycline would mean some opportunistic bacterial infection would likely be resistant to it.Flagyl if it worked would be better given its narraow spectrum and the smaller probability of a paracyte becoming resistant (eg Hexamita).Its certainly better if we can to avoid antibiotics if we can,hence the thead.I will investigate the "Waterhouse snail"which soulnds an interesting alternative. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chorrylan Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 has anyone tried potassium permanganate for this? Is "should" have the effect of directly killing the BG through oxidation as well as slowing subsequent re-growth through reduction of organic material and iron. nb: I'd probably shuffle the fish out whilst trying this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pseudotrop Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 has anyone tried potassium permanganate for this? Is "should" have the effect of directly killing the BG through oxidation as well as slowing subsequent re-growth through reduction of organic material and iron. nb: I'd probably shuffle the fish out whilst trying this I rekon it'd make a bit of a mess, tends to stain certain things a nasty brown colour. If it was a bare tank probably ok though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwandana Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 Definitely take your fish out PP is very effective and pretty toxic. Very fine line line between safe and deadly with fish in the tank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 malrift is correct in saying that uv won't work. Mystery snails consume BG???? If so, provided they are not STARVING and there is sufficient food in the tank (BG?) try them out. You can always pull them out should things go wrong. Just put on three or four as this will test them out and they will be easy to get back out again. Be carefull with antibiotics. Make sure you kill ALL BG when dosing otherwise you will be creating an antibiotic resistant strain of BG. CT. I'm more up on human medicine than fish but wouldn't it also be true that exposing the tank to antibiotics too often would also cause a degree of resisitance to ABs in your fish? I'm sure this wouldn't be desirable either. I think the general line is to NOT use antibiotics for BG as people will mess it up and a antibiotic resistant strain of BG will result. But it is an easy solution and provided it is used responsibly.... So we are in effect saying the same thing Frenzy, which was the point I made when I said "Be carefull with antibiotics...etc" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killiguy Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 Ihave found a source of Waterhouse snails at Dave Wilsons "Aquagreen"online shop.He says they eat cyanobacteria.They look like mystery snails.I think III give them a try.The link is:Aquagreen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CThompson Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 I followed the link, and kudos to Noddy65 for the waterhouse snail suggestion. Killiguy - please keep us informed as to your success or lack there of. I've seen many pleas for BG help over the years on ACE, and from memory none with a such a potentially successful outcome. The only thing to watch out for is that they don't take over the tank. With a larger adult size perhaps they don't reach sexual maturity at sizes so small to make it difficult to cherry pick them out when needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killiguy Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 It appears from the thread below that these snails are at risk of starving given their specialized feeding requirements.May have to keep moving them around.I wonder if they eat zuchinni, that would make things easier.I wonder if cichlids eat them III report back in a few months aquaruim life waterhouse sail thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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